A must read if yuo take Amiben for sleep at night

[Guest guest]

My DR perscribed elavil 50 mg and I can decide wether I need all 50

mg or cut it in half. she old me try to cy ut it in half one night

and if I wake up take the other half and see how I slep since I wake

up about 3 times abuot 1 am 4 am and 6 am and groggy the next day

too.I also have heard lack of sleep also makes our pain level higher

too. so read and talk it over with yuor dr if on Ambien. heidi

Does the sleeping agent Ambien (zolpidem) do anything other than

sedate you at night so that you do not have to lie in bed awake

watching the clock? A study by Roehrs, Ph.D., and co-workers

looking at the effects of sleep in insomnia patients may be highly

relevant for people with FM.1

Insomnia patients have been shown to have elevated evening levels of

cortisol, a hormone produced by the adrenal glands that increases

alertness. Roehrs hypothesized that Ambien might improve the quality

of sleep in people with insomnia by reducing the pre-sleep level of

cortisol that might be keeping patients aroused and contributing to

their awakenings. He tested this theory during a four month placebo-

controlled trial of Ambien (half the patients were given 10 mg Ambien

and half were given a placebo, both taken 30 minutes before bedtime).

Not only did nightly Ambien lead to improved sleep efficiency in

people with insomnia, it also produced a significant drop in the pre-

sleep cortisol levels during the fourth month. This reduction in

evening cortisol occurred even though the hormone was sampled prior

to taking the Ambien. Over the span of four months, Ambien was able

to shift the 24-hour rhythm of cortisol production so that the peak

occurred much earlier in the day (a time when it is most desirable).

People with FM do not have high enough cortisol levels to fend off

fatigue.2 Then at bedtime, cortisol levels are too high, leaving

patients feeling wired but tired. If you take Ambien at the same time

each night, while maintaining a rigid bedtime schedule, over time you

may be able to improve your sleep and daytime fatigue. In fact,

improvement in sleep and daytime fatigue was demonstrated by Harvey

Moldofsky, M.D., in a small, four-night treatment trial of Ambien in

FM patients 12 years ago.3 He also showed that after four nights of

Ambien, patients had less energy at bedtime—another indication that

the drug helps correct the cortisol rhythm.

1. Roehrs T, et al. SLEEP 31 (Abstract Supplement):A37, Abs#0113,

2008.

2. Crofford LJ, et al. Brain Behav Immunity 18:314-325, 2004.

3. Moldofsky H, et al. J Rheumatol 23:529-33, 1996.